


Cooper or Neal

by guineamania



Category: Glee, White Collar
Genre: Cooper is Neal, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/M, Faked Death, Gen, Kidnapping, M/M, Non-Consensual Drug Use
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-31
Updated: 2015-04-15
Packaged: 2018-03-20 14:35:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,132
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3653988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/guineamania/pseuds/guineamania
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cooper Anderson is dead. Well to be honest he was never really alive. Cooper Anderson's other name is Neal Caffrey and he is dead.<br/>After discovering his brother's death, Blaine has to come clean to Kurt above his real family/childhood and they both get dragged into a world of subterfuge and white collar crimes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So for this story to work there are some cannon changes.   
> First off White Collar ending and the end of S6 Ep10 of Glee coincide  
> Secondly, Blaine and Cooper are ten years apart in age and grew up together due to reasons explained later in the story  
> Thanks and hope you enjoy the story!

Kurt found Blaine crying in the choir room. It had been a day since their sectionals win so Kurt, Blaine and Will had decided to give the kids a couple of days off. Rachael was gone and it already felt different around McKinley without her. But that wouldn’t cause Blaine to cry in the way he was now. Ever since the Dalton fire he had been strangely distant even with the Warblers being accepted into the New Directions. “Hey sweetie,” Kurt whispered, sitting down next to his shaking husband. In an instant after hearing Kurt’s voice Blaine latched onto him and proceeded to sob even louder into Kurt’s chest. Kurt just sat there, stroking Blaine’s hair softly as his sobs became dry and died down to sniffles. “Can you tell me what’s wrong?” Kurt sighed, as Blaine’s form stopped trembling.   
“It’s Cooper,” Blaine replied, choking back another sob, “he’s dead!” 

Kurt couldn’t believe it. He just couldn’t wrap his head around the fact Cooper was dead. The only time Kurt had ever met his husband’s brother was three years ago when he made an appearance and hosted that dreadfully awful acting masterclass. But through the post cards and the regular phone calls Kurt could tell that Blaine really loved his brother despite their differences. “How did he die?” Kurt asked, massaging a pattern carefully onto Blaine’s back and gesturing to anyone that came by to move on.   
“I have something that I need to tell you Kurt and you have to listen until I am done,” Blaine murmured, sitting up and wiping the tears from his eyes. “My brother wasn’t an actor, he was a criminal informant for the FBI,” Blaine replied and he need not have worried about Kurt interrupting. He was stunned silent. Cooper Anderson, a convict. It just couldn’t be true. “He was convicted of bond forgery and was given four years. He broke out before those four years were up and was given another four years. The agent that caught him gave him a chance and took him on as a criminal informant,” Blaine explained. Kurt still couldn’t wrap his head around it; the Cooper he had met was a klutz and a bit of an idiot. Then it dawned on him. The pointing and shouting, it was all a pretence so no one would suspect him. “I also have to tell you my real parents aren’t Mr and Mrs Anderson, I was adopted,” he continued and Kurt’s mind was sent reeling again. “My really parents are Nicola Caffrey-Bennett and a Marshall Oscar Carter. I was born in WITSEC as mum’s husband and Cooper’s dad was a dirty cop. My mum went insane about three years into the placement and hooked up with one of the Marshalls. I was born and Cooper practically raised me. When Cooper turned eighteen he left and I was taken by social services and the Anderson’s adopted me when I was eight. Cooper came back, he was called Neal Caffrey then, because he wasn’t to see me. The Anderson’s sort of adopted him too so he changed his name to Cooper Anderson. However he only stayed around for a year and I heard he had turned to a life of crime. The next time I saw him was when you did, nine years later and he was serving his sentence with the FBI agent. And now he is dead,” Blaine blurted out as if he had broken the dam and couldn’t stop it coming.  
“Shhh, it’s okay,” Kurt comforted as the tears returned. “Thank you for telling me,” was all Kurt could choke out after all this revelations. It would take some time to get used to. “Now how about we head home,” Kurt suggested. Blaine nodded weakly against his chest.

Cooper’s funeral was a strange affair as there weren’t many people that could come. Blaine had denied wanting to go as there was still a lot of work to do with the New Directions and his NYU application but Kurt wasn’t paying any attention to any of his excuses. “Blaine darling, if you want to go then we can go. Mr Schue is perfectly capable of working with the kids while we spend a couple of days in New York. We can even take time to look at apartments for us to rent,” Kurt argued as they sat in the Hummel household. Carole and Burt had kindly let them stay when Blaine and Kurt got back together again and they were still in Lima. They were also in DC for the next two weeks as Burt was still a member of congress. They had the house to themselves. And that always meant nights cuddling on the settee watching rubbish films with copious amounts of popcorn but today they had more important things to discuss. It had been a week since Cooper’s death and the funeral was in another week. It was being organised by Cooper’s old FBI handler and his wife. It clearly upset Blaine that they knew his brother more than Blaine did himself but he was glad that someone had cared about Cooper when he couldn’t.   
“Okay,” Blaine whispered. Kurt smiled softly as he fishing his phone out of his pocket. Kurt hoped that this funeral would help Blaine move on. He hadn’t been the same since the Dalton fire and Cooper’s death had caused him to retreat in on himself even further. Now even Kurt could barely get through to him. It didn’t take long to get Mr Schue to cover for them with the New Directions and the FBI agent, Peter, was delighted that his CI’s brother could attend. 

The next week passed in a sort of blur for both Blaine and Kurt as they got ready for the funeral. Blaine had barely helped with the packing, choosing instead to watch Kurt and curl up inside the leather jacket that Cooper had left accidentally when he came. Blaine had forgotten to give it back but now it was as if he was surgically attached to the coat. It was all he had of Cooper. Kurt hadn’t even needed to ask if Blaine would be wearing it to the funeral; for a while after Finn died he had done the same with his Letterman jacket. But in the end he had realised that he didn’t need the physical connection anymore. Finn was always with him whether he was wearing the jacket or not. That was what Blaine needed. Time. Kurt was perfectly happy to give him that; whatever Blaine needed Kurt would be there to give him. “You ready to go B?” Kurt asked, he had to shake Blaine’s shoulder gently to get him out of the daze he was locked in. Kurt hated this, seeing Blaine so weak like a kicked puppy. Sam had told Kurt about how Blaine had disintegrated after Kurt broke off their engagement and Kurt could now imagine what he was like. It was easy to say Blaine did not cope well with sadness; that was why he was so unfalteringly optimistic until something happened to knock him off his cloud. And when something did knock him off, he fell hard.  
“Yeah,” Blaine murmured, standing up slowly and wrapping the jacket around him again. Maybe this trip to meet the people his brother cared about would help him too.

June was a fabulous lady and Kurt was entranced. Even Blaine was beginning to smile a little bit more in her company. Apparently when Peter told Cooper’s old landlady that her tenant’s brother was coming she demanded that they stayed with her while they were in New York not in Kurt’s old flat he had moved into after Blaine left. And for that Kurt was grateful. He didn’t like the place and there was certainly no room for Blaine. However this offer was better than he could have imagined. Her house was beautiful and majestic. Kurt dreamed of one day living in a house like this. And she knew all about good fashion. And she used to be in musicals. Kurt was head over heels and Blaine loved hearing her tales of the past and of Cooper, Neal as she called him. However Cooper’s room was left untouched and Kurt often found Blaine stood at the door with the key in his hand but not going in. They had been there for a day when Kurt dared approach Blaine when he was lost in one of his trances in front of Cooper’s door. “You don’t have to go in Blaine,” Kurt sighed, reaching out and taking Blaine’s hand that was holding the key. “No one will judge you if you walk back downstairs now and don’t go in,” he continued while he stroked soothing circles over Blaine’s knuckles. His hands were shaking and his face was a mix of determination and terror. Kurt knew that Blaine would go into that room, he just had to make sure it wasn’t because he felt like he had to.   
“I want to, I just can’t,” Blaine murmured, staring at the key that was clenched in his hand. “Will you do it with me?” he asked. Kurt thought he never would.

Cooper’s apartment was spectacular and Kurt was blown away once again that day. The view was spectacular over the New York skyline and the balcony was large enough to live on. Blaine was also overwhelmed. He walked around the whole apartment, running his hands over every surface. Kurt just left him too it until he heard Blaine call out in a victorious manner. Apparently Blaine wasn’t just running his hands over all the surfaces through nostalgia, he was looking for something. “Cooper always told me that he would leave me something aside for if he ever died. He sent me a postcard a month ago saying that my inheritance would always be there for me to grab and go,” Blaine explained, unwrapping a box that was coated in tape and plastic. “When met up at McKinley he taught me to always hide a bag with money and a fake passport to grab and go. I knew he would have left something for me here,” Blaine explained, the box itself was beautiful but Blaine was far more interested in the contents. Inside lay a few pictures of Cooper with a variety of different people, including one of him and Blaine when he visited; there was also a phone number for him to call if there was any emergency. However Blaine’s jaw dropped at what lied at the bottom. There was a million dollars lining the bottom of the drawer. That was enough for Blaine to pay off his collage fees, pay off Kurt’s collage fees, buy them a house in New York and fund the New Directions with plenty to spare. A note rested on top reading: this is your inheritance Blaine and I bet you can find better ways to use it than I ever did, I will always love you. Kurt embraced his husband as Blaine just sat there, gobsmacked. 

The funeral was a depressing affair and Kurt was glad when they were able to leave back to the Burke’s household for a bit of a get together. Elizabeth Burke was another person Kurt was delighted to meet. She was an event planner and shared Kurt’s passion for planning high quality events even if his were a little more unorthodox. However all the way through the evening, Kurt couldn’t stop glancing over to Blaine. He had wanted to be left alone after the funeral and Kurt decided to let him have his time to think and mourn. Currently he was sat with Peter Burke, Cooper’s handler and really got friend. About an hour ago the golden Labrador had attached itself to Blaine so that he could comfort him. It did seem to be working as Blaine carded his hand through the dog’s long fur. He was currently absorbed in the conversation with Peter and he didn’t seem to be getting any more upset. Actually it looked like the talk with Peter was making him feel better; Kurt smiled slightly in relief and Elizabeth pretended not to notice the loving gaze. 

It took a month for Blaine to feel better in himself. Cooper’s money was happily seeing them both through college in a beautiful apartment that Elizabeth had helped them choose and collaborated with Kurt to furnish. Peter and Elizabeth had become vital friends to the couple when they both moved to New York. Peter really helped Blaine get over Cooper’s death. They talked regularly and went to baseball games together as Kurt became Elizabeth’s new taste tester. Now they were on their way back to Lima to visit all their friends who were home for Thanksgiving and to see Burt for the holiday. They spent a day in Westerville visiting the old Warbler’s who Blaine had remained in contact with and were just packing up ready to go to Lima. The desk clerk rung up to say that a man named Jeff was there to see a Blaine Anderson-Hummel. Blaine had set off down to see him and Kurt was packing up the remainder of their belongings and went to meet him downstairs. There was no one there. A sign rested on the desk to say that it was closed for ten minutes and there was no sign of either Jeff or Blaine. Kurt began to panic internally. Blaine wouldn’t have just left without texting Kurt to say where he was going. When the clerk returned he explained that he had not called their room and let Kurt look at the security footage in an attempt to appease his fears.

Blaine had been kidnapped


	2. Chapter 2

Blaine had been kidnapped. There was no doubt about that fact. A man that Kurt had never seen before had walked in, waited for Blaine to appear and after they had talked for a while, they had both walked out and got into a car. However there was no signs of Blaine being coerced so the clerk would not ring the police. Unfortunately he was right, the police would never believe Blaine had been taken from this evidence and they would have to wait forty eight hours before Blaine was announced a missing person. Not even Peter at the FBI would be able to do anything unless there was some more concrete evidence. There was only one thing he could do, call the number Cooper had left. It rung for what felt like an eternity before someone picked up. “You’ve reached James Maine, who’s speaking?” an unfamiliar voice asked.   
“This is Kurt Anderson-Hummel, I was told to ring this number if I ever needed help,” Kurt murmured, unsure if he had got the right number.  
“Um okay, is this to do with Mr Caffrey? James asked slowly.  
“Well yeah. My husband Blaine has been kidnapped and Mr Caffrey told us to ring this number if we ever needed help,” Kurt choked out, a so following it.  
“Blaine,” the unknown man murmured slowly. “I’m coming, you hold tight Kurt. I’ll be there in a few hours. Where are you?” he questioned, much more frantic now that Blaine’s name had been mentioned.   
“Westerville Ohio,” Kurt replied, thankful that someone was taking charge even if he didn’t know this man.   
“Okay travel back to Lima and I will meet you there. Can you call Peter Burke from the FBI and have him come to Lima unofficially?” James requested again. Kurt gave this man his address and they hung up. Peter was already booking a flight before Kurt had even finished explaining. He was lucky that they had made such good friends with the Burke’s. And thankfully he was already packed and the clerk made sure he got a cab back to Lima. He felt like zombie knowing that there was nothing more he could do for Blaine now. There was only waiting.

Peter was the first to arrive at the Hudson-Hummel household. Kurt was sat on the couch mindlessly watching daytime TV when he thumped on the door. Burt was the one to answer and thankfully he recognised the FBI agent from Kurt’s photos. They were silent for a few minutes before Peter dared speak up. “I need you to tell me everything that happened and all about this person Neal asked you to ring if you needed any help,” Peter sighed but Kurt reluctantly understood. Peter needed to know everything if he was going to be helping them. “I was packing and we got a call from the clerk to say that one of Blaine’s friends, Jeff, was there to see him. We had told Jeff where we were staying the night before so neither of us questioned it. I decided to give them some time alone but when I came down Blaine was gone. The clerk said he had never called up and let me look at the security footage. Blaine was talking to a man and that man escorted him out and into a car. Blaine would never have left without telling me where he was going and the man was definitely not Jeff. However there was nowhere near enough evidence for me to call the police or the FBI so I called the number Cooper left us in case of emergencies. It was a man called James Maine and he told me to come home and to call you,” Kurt explained and by the end tears were running down his cheeks. He just wanted his husband back and safe in his arms. They sat there in tense silence after Peter got them both a beer out of the fridge. Burt had texted to say that he was taking Carol out tonight so Peter and Blaine would have the house to themselves. Kurt was grateful that his father wasn’t there to fuss over him. The companionable silence with Peter was nice. 

It took six hours but finally there was a knock on the door. It was four in the afternoon so theoretically it could be anyone but Kurt felt in his heart it was the man they were waiting for. He leapt to his feet and ran over to the door, pulling it open with shaking hands. Kurt nearly fainted. He nearly collapsed to the floor at the sight that met him. “Cooper?” Kurt squeaked.  
“Hey Kurt,” he smiled. Kurt did faint. 

When Kurt came to, there was a cold towel resting on his forehead and a blanket laid carefully over him. There was whispering but Kurt couldn’t make out what they were saying. Cooper had arrived. Cooper wasn’t dead. Why wasn’t Kurt freaking out? There was just a twinge in his heart as he sat up that was then replaced by an anger. Blaine had spent months crying over his brother’s death and now he was back. He was never really dead at all. That made him furious, no one should ever do that to their family and he was not forgiven just because he was back to help out now that Blaine was in trouble. And also Blaine’s kidnapping was probably to do with him anyway. I was clearly not a coincidence that as soon as Blaine came out at Neal Caffrey’s brother, he was then kidnapped. Kurt felt the anger grow in his veins and come to a boiling point. He stormed into the kitchen, throwing the towel and blanket to the floor in his hurry. Peter and Neal were sat at the breakfast bar in the kitchen as Kurt threw open the door and stormed towards Neal. “Oh hey Kurt, sorry for…” Neal began apologising but was cut off by a fist flying towards his face. Neal was thrown backwards with a shocked expression and his hand clutching his face. “You bastard!” Kurt screamed, his whole body shaking with adrenaline and anger. “Do you know what your fake death did to Blaine? Do you care?” he screamed, Peter dived in to hold Kurt back as the smaller man attempted to continue the assault. “He didn’t stop crying and you know that stupid leather jacket you left at McKinley? He kept it and hadn’t taken it off even to sleep since we got the call. Your little act almost killed him!” Kurt screamed but Peter was too strong. Neal just stared dumbfounded at the usually calm and sweet man that was currently attempting to tear his face off. “You better find him and you better pray that he is okay when you do because if not I will delight in hunting you down and making you wish your roles had been reversed,” Kurt hissed before throwing Peter away and storming out of the backdoor. As soon as the door closed Kurt was sliding down the wall, not caring if his clothes got dirty for once in his life. The outburst had taken the last bit of energy he had left. Tears welled up in his eyes as it began to rain. He just wanted his husband back.

“Hey Kurtie, come inside,” Burt whispered when he came home to find Cooper, who was supposedly dead, holding an ice pack to his face and his son shivering outside in the pouring rain. Kurt shuffled back inside and down to his basement without looking at Cooper at all. He got changed quickly and just sat on the bed staring at the picture of him and Blaine at the dance. It was still his favourite picture of the two of them. That was during their first run at things and before life got in the way of their childlike innocence. Even then Blaine was everything to Kurt, they just needed to live as well as love. Now they were settled down and everything was going well. Until now. Until Blaine had been cruelly ripped out of his life once again and this time there was nothing he could do to get him back. He was going to have to work with Neal if they were going to save Blaine from whatever trouble he was in. He was going to have to walk up there and extend his hand in peace. Kurt closed his eyes again and took deep meditative breaths. He had to do this. For his husband, for Blaine.

“I still hate you, and I will never forgive you for the horror that you have put Blaine through,” Kurt exclaimed as he slammed the door from the basement and stormed into the lounge where his father, Neal and Peter were sat.   
“I’m not expecting you to forgive me Kurt, to be honest. You would be a fool if you did,” Neal sighed, an impressive bruise blooming on his jaw. Kurt felt pride swell in his chest that he was the cause of that bruise. Blaine’s boxing lessons really did help out. “I want my little brother back too and as soon as I know he is safe I will be out of your lives forever once again,” Neal explained, offering his hand tentatively to Kurt in a peace gesture. Kurt reluctantly took it. Neal was right, they didn’t have to like each other. All they had to do was tolerate each other until his husband was home. Then they never had to set eyes on each other again. It was a good arrangement.   
“So what is the plan?” Kurt asked, sitting on the couch next to his father and curling up next to him. Burt’s arm instinctively curled around his son’s shoulder in a comforting gesture. Kurt always felt safe in his father’s arms, even though he was now twenty one and at college it was still a safe haven.   
“I will get my sources out to see if anyone is trying to get in contact with me. You are right, I must be the reason why Blaine was taken so someone will be wanting to find me,” Neal explained, Kurt watched a tear slide down his cheek. To be honest Kurt had not thought about how this all would be effecting Neal. It was his brother that was taken. Yes they were not close but it was still his little brother.  
“And I am going to get the most trusted on my team to try and get any details they can from cameras around the kidnapping site,” Peter explained.  
“So what can I do?” Kurt asked, there was no whey in hell he was going to sit here like a child and let other people rescue his husband.   
“Kurt you need to stay here, get in contact with all your friends and all your contacts and get a lookout for Blaine,” Peter explained. It was clear to Kurt that Peter was just coming up with something for him to do. “It will be hard for them to get him out of such a close knit place as Lima and Westerville. Also the culprit must have known about your friends so they might have some suspicions of people,” Peter expanded and this time Kurt did have to admit that Peter was right. Maybe he would have better luck talking to people who were at the Warblers reunion, one of them might have noticed someone asking about Blaine. The kidnapper had to have got Jeff’s name and their hotel from somewhere and the party was probably the easiest place to get it from.   
“Okay but you must both promise to keep me and my dad in the loop,” Kurt sighed, with a squeeze on the shoulder from Burt for support.   
“Of course,” Neal nodded but as he opened his mouth to speak the shrill ring of the phone cut him off. Kurt reached over for it and answered. 

“Kurt Anderson-Hummel speaking,” he sighed but paled at the voice in response.  
“Hi Kurt darling, its Pam. Is Blainey there?” if there was one person Kurt really did not want to hear from now, it was Pam Anderson. Blaine’s mum.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the mix up with chapters! This is the real chapter 3 and should explain things!

“Mrs Anderson,” Kurt stuttered and watched Burt’s face drop.   
“Oh how many times Kurt, call me Pam,” she laughed in response. Peter and Neal also worked it out and Neal asked for the phone silently. It was clear that he really did not want more people to know of his not death but he was not going to leave Kurt to explain this all to his sort of foster mother. “Um, Blaine isn’t here at the moment but I do have someone who wants to talk to you,” Kurt blurted out and threw the phone to Neal like it was a hot coal.   
“Hey Pam,” Neal sighed, the phone was on speaker and everyone felt like they were intruding on a private moment.   
“Cooper?” Pam question and that was it for Kurt, he didn’t want to intrude on this moment. He got up and stepped down into the basement. He might as well start ringing round now. 

No one knew anything and it was driving Kurt slowly insane. About quarter of an hour after he had come down here Peter had come down to inform him that he was going back to New York with Neal. Apparently Peter needed to get back to work to access the FBI’s files and coordinate his team. Neal also thought that it would be much easier to meet with his sources in the Big Apple. Kurt decided to stay in Lima. Kurt had booked a couple of weeks off NYADA and Vogue.com claiming that his husband was ill. He wouldn’t be able to focus at all anyway until Blaine was safely back in his arms. He was meeting up with the Warbler’s at the Lima Bean the next day to explain the situation and home comfort were definitely needed right now.

All the Warbler’s were more than happy to help him out. Nick sent him the guest list from the reunion but none of the names looked at all suspicious to even the Warblers who had been at the school forever and were still involved. Kurt checked the lists also against the current Warblers that Blaine had taught. However he could not remember any of them having any particular interest in Blaine. However Kurt took it upon himself to check up on every single person that was at that party.

“Dad?” Kurt asked a couple of days later when the duo had just worked through the last of the list of people at the Dalton reunion. “Why were you not shocked at Neal being alive?” he questioned.  
“I was shocked, but when you are a parent your child needs to come first,” Burt sighed, his hand resting lightly on Kurt’s shoulder. “When I walked in I saw Neal and was going to question him and I was so confused and shocked. But then Peter told me you were outside in the rain and not coming inside. You were my instantly my priority,” Burt explained and Kurt collapsed against his side. “Anyway you did all the surprised needed, fainting and beating him up,” Burt teased his son.

Kurt hadn’t slept in a week. Every time he tried the image of Blaine being hurt and tied up in some dingy basement woke him straight back up again. Pam Anderson had also been a nearly constant presence on the phone as she waited for news on her son’s situation. It was nice to know that someone was in the same situation as him. Neal and Peter were not getting anywhere. The car Blaine had been abducted into had been ditched somewhere with no CCTV cameras and swapped. They tried to trace the car but it had been stolen. A dead end. Another dead end and Neal was faring no better. Kurt’s phone rung once again. He reached for it, expecting it to be Pam Anderson, but it was someone he hadn’t even thought about in all of this. They had both kept in touch after their careers had taken off in different directions. Elliot had been asked to go on tour with Queen and had leapt on the opportunity as it was his dream job. Unfortunately that did mean they had not seen each other in a long time. “Hey Starchild,” Kurt sighed, falling back onto his bed as he answered.  
“I know this may be a sore question for you,” Elliot began, no pleasantries. “Are you and Blaine still together?” he asked tentatively.  
“Yes, why?” Kurt replied abruptly, it was a strange question just to ask.   
“I just saw him get out of a car with another man and go into the petrol station across the road,” Elliot explained, Kurt was on his feet in an instant and throwing himself up the stairs.  
“Elliot are they still there, where are you?” Kurt shouted, pressing his mobile to his ear and dialling Peter’s mobile number on the home phone.   
“Yeah I rang you as soon as they got out of the car, what’s going on?” Elliot questioned as Kurt prayed for Peter to pick up.   
“Blaine’s been kidnapped and you are the first lead we have got. Where are you? I need you to take pictures of the car and the man that has Blaine!” Kurt exclaimed frantically as he waited for Peter to pick up. I’m in the Spotlight dinner should I call the police?” Elliott asked clearly shocked.  
“No the FBI is coming,” Kurt exclaimed, throwing the phone to his father who knew the whole story. “I just need you to get as many pictures as possible,” Kurt panted as he listened to his father explain the situation to Peter.

He got away. By the time Peter had managed to get his team there Elliott was waiting there frantically. They had just filled up with petrol, relieved themselves and got food before they had gone. However Elliott had taken plenty of pictures. It wasn’t all good though. What Elliott had not said, not wanting to worry Kurt was that Blaine was not in a good state. He was clearly favouring his left hand side and he was looking gaunt. Bruising coated the side of his face and he was not fighting back against his captor. Kurt had flown over to New York as that was where all the information was now. Elliott had given him one of the clearest pictures. Kurt hadn’t stopped crying since. Seeing Blaine after thinking he was lost and seeing him looking like that tipped Kurt over the edge. Elliott agreed to let Kurt stay with him in his apartment, scared to leave the broken man alone. The next day no one had progressed any further on identifying the man and finding Blaine. However there had been a development. It had come from Nick from the Warblers not the FBI. “I recognised the man in the photos,” Nick exclaimed as soon as Kurt answered the phone. Kurt had sent the Warblers some of the photos without Blaine in in the vain hope that they may know something. “He’s a benefactor for the Warblers, one of the current group’s dad. I recognised him because he was the one that got Blaine into the school despite the board saying no,” Nick explained. His name was Carl Montoya and he was involved in art dealing. Neal didn’t recognise the name but he did recognise the names of some of the people that he worked with. It was Peter who by the end of the day joined all the dots. They had managed to get a warrant to read Carl’s emails and mail. It seemed that Neal had stolen something off one of his clients but there was no way to get it back while Neal was with the FBI. Carl had set up this scheme about getting Blaine into Dalton and giving him the coaching job to keep Blaine close so that when Neal was released from the FBI he would be able to return the stolen art with interest. Now Neal was dead he was collecting on the debt he was owed. With either the art or Blaine’s life. 

“Carl Montoya has got his hands in many illicit businesses,” Peter explained in the conference the next morning.   
“However we have got a list of every property that either him or his businesses own in this area. We’ve filtered out any that are in residential areas and any warehouses so he will need luxuries if he is doing this himself. We have got three farmhouse cottages to check. It may not be but it is the best chance we have. We have reported this to the FBI and they unfortunately are making us work with missing persons. They will be leading the raids,” Diana added, Kurt was just happy they were getting somewhere. However he was not happy that he wasn’t going to be allowed to help find Blaine. However it did make sense and thankfully Elliott was allowed to stay with him at the FBI’s offices. Elliott had been a great source of comfort in this ordeal. He missed spending time with one of his best friends. He just wished it was under better circumstances. 

Kurt realised then that all the tension he had ever experienced was nothing near what was happening now. No waiting for nationals results or opening his NYADA letter would ever get anywhere close to waiting for news on the safety and fate off his spouse. Elliott had given up on trying to stop Kurt pacing about half an hour ago. Peter and Diana had sworn on their lives that they would ring as soon as anything happened. Kurt had the phone in a death grip and it was plugged into the wall using an extension cable just so it wouldn’t run out of charge. If Blaine was here he was pull Kurt down into a chair and massage the tension out of his shoulder blades. But that was the whole point wasn’t it. Blaine wasn’t here. 

The phone rang.

Kurt jumped to action answering instantly regardless of who the caller id was. It was Neal. “We were wrong Kurt, I need you to get a car and drive to meet me!” Neal exclaimed, he gave them the address. Elliott drove. Kurt was in no fit state to be behind the wheel of a car. The address Neal gave them was one of the warehouses that they had crossed off the list. Peter and Neal were already waiting for them. “We couldn’t convince missing persons that they were wrong. So it is just the four of us,” Peter explained. “We know that Carl was not holding onto Blaine himself, he has been arrested and this was an address that he had been communicating with. We do not know what is in there,” Peter explained and both men nodded. They were not sitting this out. Peter nodded to them, then kicked the door down.


	4. Chapter 4

The warehouse was small but wide open. Two henchmen sat at a table playing some form of card game but Kurt’s attention was instantly drawn to the small figure in the corner. Blaine was even worse than when they had seen him last. He was curled up against the wall with his hands bound tightly in front of him. Sweat soaked through his shirt and stuck his curls to his forehead. The bruises that snaked down the side of his face were now a rainbow of colours and his blinks were increasingly weaker. A gag had been pressed cruelly into his mouth. He hadn’t even reacted to the thud of the door hitting the floor. His two guards had. “FBI, weapons on the floor and hands behind your head!” Peter shouted, his gun focused on one and Neal’s trained on the one that had dived towards Blaine. Kurt knew that Neal hated guns; but it was clear, he would throw all of that out of the window for his little brother. Kurt’s heart softened at that moment, maybe he had been too harsh on Neal. He had tried his best to keep Blaine out of his business, even in letting him grieve. Kurt knew then that he needed to apologise when this was all over. And it almost was. Kurt darted forwards as Peter and Neal cuffed the two men. Neal had thrown his gun to Elliot, who surprisingly knew how to handle the weapon, and Peter was calling the FBI to report their success. 

Kurt’s full attention was on Blaine. He slid towards his husband and carefully eased the gag out of his mouth. It was when Kurt’s fingers brushed his skin that Blaine finally reacted to what was going on around him. His head turned quickly but his eyes latched onto Kurt’s surprise evident. “Hey B,” Kurt whispered, pressing a soft kiss to his lover’s temple.  
“K-kurt,” Blaine stammered as soon as Kurt removed the gag.   
“Yeah it’s me, we came to get you okay,” Kurt soothed as Blaine buried his head in Kurt’s chest. Kurt eased the rope off Blaine’s wrists and massaged some blood back into his hands as Blaine sobbed quietly onto his chest. Kurt looked over and Neal was stood by the door. He caught Neal’s eye and they both knew this was goodbye. There was no way that, in his current state, Blaine could deal with seeing his dead brother. Kurt would have to tell Blaine but it would be when he was better, not while he was in the middle of an emotional breakdown. The sirens shocked Blaine causing him to clutch even tighter onto Kurt but Neal was gone as soon as they arrived. There was no way he was going to go back to prison. He couldn’t protect the Anderson-Hummel family if he was back behind bars. 

Blaine was in hospital for a week after they found him. Thankfully his injuries we mostly emotional, but there was one big thing that Kurt was not expecting. “It seems his captors used a very unconventional means of controlling Blaine,” the doctor explained to Kurt, Peter and Burt. Thankfully now that Kurt and Blaine were married, Kurt was Blaine’s emergency contact and there was no hassle trying to get one of the Anderson’s to come to the hospital. Mrs Anderson was usually out of the country and Mr Anderson was not on the best terms with his son. “They had him drugged on Heroin for the duration of his stay to keep the pain away and make him complacent. They were very careful with the dosage so we do not have to worry overdose but he will have severe withdrawal symptoms,” the doctor continued. By the time the week was done, Blaine was still in the thralls of withdrawal from his drug crutch. It was decided that the duo would stay with Peter and Elizabeth until Blaine was better then they would move back to their apartment. It was also decided, without Kurt’s consent, that he would go back to NYADA. Blaine was adamant that his husband would not sacrifice his education just to babysit him. Elizabeth had already told her employees that she was going to be working from home to look after him. 

“No!” Blaine screamed as Kurt wrestled him back down onto the bed. “Get off me!” Kurt managed to fend off Blaine’s flailing arms. Blaine had got back from the hospital the day before and the doctor had been brutally honest with what the symptoms would be like. Blaine alternated between cold sweats and intense desire for more heroin. It was the later that caused Kurt to have to lay on top of his husband to stop him hunting down the nearest drug dealer.   
“I can’t B, this isn’t you,” Kurt replied, kissing Blaine’s cheek as he struggled.   
“You don’t understand Kurt!” he yelled, but the burst of energy was already fading away.   
“I don’t but I care about you,” Kurt sighed as Blaine faded into a restless sleep. This had been happening a lot. Each time Kurt just tucked him in and curled up on top of the covers, holding his husband tight. He was never going to let anyone come near Blaine ever again.

Blaine woke up in the morning with his head pounding in a brief moment of complete consciousness. Kurt was curled up next to him with deep bags under his eyes and his face crinkled in a frown. What really shocked Blaine was the large purple bruise blooming on Kurt’s jaw. There was only one thing that could be the cause of that bruise. Him. Tears welled in Blaine’s eyes and he choked back a sob. Kurt stirred with a soft little smile but it vanished at Blaine’s expression. “What’s wrong sweetheart?” Kurt asked, his hand finding Blaine’s.   
“Did I do that?” Blaine whispered hoarsely, his shaking fingers ghosting over the bruising.  
“Yes,” Kurt stated. He was not going to lie to Blaine now. They had been through far too much to do that. “But don’t you dare feel guilty Blaine Anderson! I would not have stayed with you every night if I did not know what I was getting into,” Kurt explained, pressing a tender kiss to Blaine’s lips. Blaine sighed against Kurt’s lips and collapsed against his lover. “We are going to be okay, I swear.”

Kurt came home exhausted after a serious workout with Miss July. It had been two weeks since he had gone back and he had almost caught up on everything that was missed. It seemed Miss July’s hatred of Rachael had rubbed off on him already and she was determined to push him to his limits every day. It didn’t help that he was constantly worried about Blaine and not focusing at all. Blaine was laid down on the settee watching The Princess and the Frog drowsily. Fortunately Blaine was a lot better and he would be starting at NYU in a couple of mouths, they had delayed his entry but the university was still more than happy to have him. They had both worked their way through the whole Disney library in the time Blaine had been bedridden and the nights full of nightmares. They had fought through and Kurt smiled softly as he sat down next to Blaine’s head. The shorter man smiled softly, shuffling so his head rested on his husband’s lap. They sat there, no words needed, watching the film and Kurt’s fingers gentle carding through Blaine’s curls. Maybe everything was going to be okay again. 

It had been a year since Blaine was kidnapped and they were all happy. Kurt was starring in his first Broadway production which was Rent as Roger. It was his big break. Blaine was taking a bit of time out from the music and theatre business. He had been in many off Broadway productions sometimes it was just too much and Blaine never had been the best at coping with adversity. It was a couple of weeks ago that Principal William Schuester had come to him with a proposal. Blaine had graduated NYU with a teaching degree for music but had not had cause to use it yet and Will was down a teacher and coach for the New Directions. Sam was getting married and was taking two months off to prepare for the wedding and his honeymoon. It was perfect. Blaine had never felt so alive as he did coaching show choir once again. Kurt and Blaine had mastered long distance as well and everything was going well. Until one Monday morning. 

Blaine walked into his choir room to find an eerily familiar man talking to Will. As he turned around Blaine’s knees buckled. Cooper was alive. His big brother was not dead. “Hey Bee,” Cooper smiled, he looked just the same as he did last time they saw each other. But he was in a suit not the leather jacket that he had left behind. Blaine didn’t know what to do. He just sat on the floor gawping until Will helped him into one of those uncomfortable red plastic chairs.   
“Y-you,” Blaine stuttered, finally regaining control of his thoughts. Cooper pulled over a chair and sat on it backwards, facing Blaine.  
“Yes Blainey it’s me. I’m sorry but I had to fake my death to protect you,” Cooper explained with his usual blunt attitude. Tears welled up in Blaine’s eyes as a smile twitched at his lips. He knew that once he had wrapped his head around it he would be furious but now it was all happiness. Blaine jumped off his chair and threw himself at his long lost brother. Blaine didn’t notice Will leaving or the fact that none of his Glee club turned up to rehearsal that day. He was just lost in Cooper Anderson. 

When Blaine got back to Burt and Carole’s home at the end of the day he was on a cloud. The Hummel-Hudson’s were adamant that their son in law would not be staying in an hotel while he was in their town and to be honest it was nice to be back at the house that was his second home for so long. During the school day, Cooper had explained everything and made Blaine swear he would not be mad a Kurt for keeping this from him. He had to stay and coach the New Directions after school and his good mood seemed to be contagious. One kid even confessed that they wanted Blaine to stay even when Sam came back. He sat there bouncing on his bed as the joy of the day continued to course through his veins. The Skype call was ringing as he waited for Kurt to pick up. They had promised to stay in contact and skype every other night. It connected and Blaine’s smile grew as Kurt’s face appeared on his screen. “Hey darling,” Kurt smiled, settling down on the big soft couch they both adored.   
“Guess who came to see me at school today,” Blaine blurted out, hellos were not important at this time.  
“Umm, Sam?” Kurt questioned, his nose crinkling as he thought.  
“Cooper!” Blaine blurted out and he watched Kurt’s smile grow. “He came back and he explained everything and how you both saved me not the FBI missing persons department like everyone told me,” he continued and Kurt just watched him fondly. Blaine just couldn’t stop smiling. He had thought his only brother was dead and now he wasn’t, why wouldn’t he be happy. Blaine continued to explain all about his day, the conversation sliding into the mundane until they were both falling asleep. Everything was coming together in Blaine’s life now and he was just so happy.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is it :)  
> The end of the road. I hope you have enjoyed and please comment to say what you think!

Cooper had explained that he would not be around a lot. But that was nothing new, Blaine just needed to know his brother was safe and out there living his life. Occasionally they got post cards with no name or return address from all over the world. They knew it was Cooper and Blaine enjoyed reading the messages on each one. It had been four years since Blaine last saw Cooper and he had a collection of postcards that covered a wall in their room of all the memories since he met Kurt. Kurt had turned to writing children’s books when their child was proposed and Will had rung up offering Blaine a permanent position teaching drama and coaching a new glee group at McKinley, that he had named the Warblers. It wasn’t going to be an all-boys group but it was still honouring Dalton. The school hadn’t been rebuilt. After a long discussion with Kurt it was decided that as soon as their child was born they would move back to Lima to raise her in a less frantic environment. Burt and Carole had decided to move away to DC so Burt could continue his political career and Carole could get away from the memories. When the house in Lima Ohio came up for sale Blaine and Kurt jumped on it. 

Kurt was sat at home unpacking when he got the call. Rachel had gone into labour. Before Blaine got home, Kurt had already packed and had two tickets for the first available flight to New York. Neither of them could sit still as they waited for the flight and for the whole duration of it. Unfortunately they were not sat together but either side of the aisle. Kurt was listening to some soothing music but even music could not sooth Blaine’s hyperactive nature. It reached a climax when the old lady next to Blaine offered him a sleeping tablet as he clearly was not a fan of flying. It was agony to have to have their phones off for the flight and as soon as his feet were back on solid land, Kurt was ringing Jesse. Rachel was fine and so was their unborn child. She was in hospital as the little infant was early but it was all progressing as hoped. Blaine was also on the phone as they jumped into the taxi. When they arrived Elliot and Sam were stood in the waiting room. It had been decided already that Rachel and Sam were going to be the god parents of their child and Sam had been staying with Elliot during his summer retreat. It was strange to see the friends from different sides of their lives mingling but it felt good at the same time. They arrived around eight or nine hours into Rachel’s labour and were all sat in the waiting room for another two hours with elevator music and bad coffee. Jesse walked out of the swing doors shaking and panting. He looked up at the two man who were both stood, praying for good news.

“It’s a girl.” 

Time stopped after Jesse’s announcement. Kurt couldn’t move. It was a girl, they had a little baby girl. Even though they had been preparing for this for the last year it was still unreal. There was a tiny person through those doors that was theirs and would rely on them. Then everything sped back into action as Blaine pulled Kurt through the doors and into Rachel’s room. She was sat up into her bed, sweat sticking her hair to her forehead but her beaming smile made up for all of that. However both of them could not look away from the little bundle in her arms. Their daughter was beautiful. She was passed to Blaine first, probably because Kurt was shaking like a leaf. He watched her little eyes open and in that moment it was clear whose daughter she was. Brilliant hazel eyes stared at each other as Blaine’s smile grew. Kurt thought he would be upset if their child wasn’t technically his. But he was just happy that she would be like Blaine. The world would be a better place if everyone was like Blaine. “Blaine, sorry to disturb but there is someone here to see you,” Elliot smiled, peaking his head through the door. Blaine muttered under his breath but passed their bundle of joy over to Kurt tenderly.   
“I’ll be right back,” Blaine smiled, pressing a kiss tenderly to Kurt’s temple before he left. Kurt just stood there cradling his daughter until Blaine ran back in pulling someone else in after him.

“Hey Cooper,” Kurt rolled his eyes as he took in the figure behind his hyperactive husband. Cooper looked well. The casual travelling lifestyle had clearly done him some good since they last saw him and Blaine was clearly delighted at his arrival.   
“Kurt, Elliott called him. Elliott called him so he could come see his niece. Elliott’s my best friend now,” Blaine bounced, brushing off the grumpy call from Sam out in the corridor. Kurt just laughed shaking his head before turning properly to Cooper. Their daughter was sleeping again now and Cooper was grinning at her.  
“Do you want to hold her?” Kurt asked quietly, noticing Rachel had drifted off as well. She was going to be so fed up of gifts by the time Blaine and Kurt were done. They could never repay her. Cooper’s eyes widened almost comically but Blaine had already pushed him forwards. Cooper took her gently in his arms and smiled fondly as she curled towards his body heat.  
“What’s her name?” Cooper asked. Blaine and Kurt looked at each other before answering simultaneously.  
“Maria.”

Cooper was around for all the big moments in their lives. Maria’s christening, Maria’s first day at school, the Warbler’s first nationals win, Kurt’s first book release, their second daughter’s birth (Esme she was called) and many more. It was like he never went away and he promised that the Anderson-Hummels were never getting rid of him. Everyone seemed to forget about Blaine’s kidnapping as something so much better came out of it. The love between brothers.


End file.
